Young adult narcissism: A 20 year longitudinal study of the contribution of parenting styles, preschool precursors of narcissism, and denial

The role of parenting styles in the development of young adult narcissism is investigated with individuals from the Block and Block (1980) longitudinal study. At age 3, participants were assessed for the presence of narcissism precursors, and mothers and fathers provided information about their parenting styles. At age 23, the presence of both healthy and maladaptive narcissism was assessed, along with the use of denial. The results showed that parenting styles had a direct effect on the development of healthy narcissism, but the effect on the development of maladaptive narcissism depended on the child’s initial proclivity towards narcissism. Also, the use of denial was positively associated with the presence of maladaptive narcissism, but not with healthy narcissism.